Find Me, Sensei
by thegoatromantic
Summary: It was a quiet, peaceful day in Konoha when Ino surprised her old teacher by kissing him. She left him a note instructing him to find her, and from the moment he finishes the message it's game on as he chases her down on a quest for answers. Ino/Asuma


Author's Note: Eeeee! My first Ino/Asuma story. I'm excited for this story because I think it will be really good. I mean, this first chapter is already 3.5k words! How awesome is that? I wanted to make it longer, but I figured that where I ended it was a good place to end it, so now it's only this long. Not that I'm really unhappy about that. I know that I can write long stories now, though. Anyway, I know that I am supposed to be updating my other stories, but I've just been so drained of ideas for them, especially Trouble Holding On. I just don't know how I want it to go...(I hate you, writer's block. You are terrible and I'd like you to go away.) Anyway! Before I get too off-track, here it is, I plan on it being longer than this, and again, I will try to update it often. Hopefully I won't get writer's block on this story, too. As I do with the other stories, I'd like to let you know that I own none of the characters in this story, and that in this case they all belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I don't mind that, but I wish he'd write the stories using my pairings. Hahaha. Hope you enjoy this story, and I'd like to remind you (or tell you for the first time) that I enjoy reading the reviews for my stories and that it makes me very happy to know that you enjoy reading my stories as much as I enjoy writing them.

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**Chapter 1: Game On!**

"Asuma, can you help me with something?" Ino questioned, running her fingers through her light blonde hair anxiously as she stared at the piece of blank paper beneath her pencil. An idea caught her and she began to scribble furiously all over it. It made a lot of noise in the silent room and Asuma looked up at her from his desk and watched her for a moment. She seemed hard at work and he didn't want to disturb her, and he had thought that she had found her muse when she stopped glanced up at him again he nodded, stood up, and tucked what he was working on into a manilla folder on his desk. He closed the folder and pushed it to the side so that it was out of the way. He hated cluttered, and so he kept his desk neat. Some of his friends, like Kakashi, were messy and went with things as they happened. Asuma liked to know what was going to happen and when it was going to happen. He took a lot of time planning things out, and he was always happy with the results that he got afterwards.

Before he walked over to Ino he stretched his arms over his head and yawned quietly before he looked out the window. It was a nice, lazy, sunny day today, and he was cooped up inside working on paperwork. He would much rather have been outside, enjoying the nice weather, but he simply had too much work to do and not enough time to do it. Apparently Ino did as well, he thought, and he walked over to her and stood in front of her desk. He felt bad for her, knowing that she liked to be outside possibly even more than he did. He also knew how little she liked to do a lot of work. He was proud of her, though, knowing he taught her good work habits. She always finished her work on time, even if she didn't want to do it, and it was always a good quality of work too.

He looked down at her piece of paper and began to think about it like it was a riddle. He wasn't a pro at reading upside down, but he figured he'd give it a try. He stood in front of the paper and looked down at it, attempting to read whatever was on the paper upside down, but it was difficult and he titled his head to try to get a better view. He just couldn't read it upside down, and especially not when Ino decided to pop her head in front of the paper and block his view of it's content. Ino gazed up at him with her big, blue eyes. They sparkled with good humor and Asuma sighed, pushing her head to the side.

"Ino, it's kind of difficult to read your paper if your head is in the way," he said, craning his neck the other direction to see what was written on the paper. He knew she didn't care; they had a great teacher-student relationship, built up from all the days of when they trained as a team years ago. It hadn't been too long ago, but it had been a few years now and Ino was no longer his student, though she still came to him for guidance from time to time. All of the old team did, and he always made time for them whenever they showed up. From time to time he gathered them all up and took them out to eat, an expensive ordeal, considering Choji's indulgent eating habits.

Asuma gave another attempt at trying to read the paper so that he could help, but he never got a chance to read it; Ino shot out of her chair as soon as he stopped moving and grabbed his neck, pulling him into a deep kiss He resisted her and tried to pull his head away, but Ino held him in place, determined to kiss him. She nibbled softly on his bottom lip and felt his resistance falter just a little bit, not much, but enough to know that she had a chance at winning him over. Even if it was only a small chance, she knew that it would be possible someday. She smiled at the realization, still kissing Asuma, and began to move her hands around to make signs. She had to let go of Asuma's neck to do this, but she had accomplished what she had intended to and felt that it was time to leave now. She completed her series of hand signs and she disappeared, leaving Asuma standing in the middle of the classroom, his cheeks slightly red and his mind stunned with confusing.

Asuma blinked a few times and tried to understand what had just happened; he had been at his desk doing work and then Ino asked for help. He walked over to her and tried to look at the paper so that he could try to help, and the next thing he knew he was locked in a semi-passionate kiss with his former student. He cringed, causing his forehead to wrinkle, and he scratched the top of his head, his dark brown hair moving out of the way as his fingers moved through it. He didn't know what to think of the situation. It was just too random for him to fathom right now.

As he looked around the room, he realized that the piece of paper was still on the desk and he snatched it up and held it into the sunlight. He began to read it, hoping there was some sort of clue for Ino's behavior, but there were only three words on the piece of paper; Find me, Sensei.

Asuma stood alone in the classroom, stunned. "What the hell...?" he mumbled, looking around the classroom. Ino had asked for help, kissed him and then left. He turned toward the piece of paper, hoping it might hold some kind of clue or reasoning to explain Ino's odd behavior. He grabbed the piece of paper and held it up toward the light. It only held three words: Find me, Sensei.

Asuma scratched his head and frowned. He hadn't been their sensei in a few years now, so Ino had no reason to call him that. In fact, he had a new troup of young jounin to train. What the hell kind of game was Ino playing?

A quiet knock sounded on Sakura's window and she jumped, smearing pink nail polish all over the back of her hand. She cursed slightly, grabbed a tissue to wipe off her hand, which was now smeared with nail poilsh, and turned in her chair to face her window. Ino squatted on a branch outside, waving her hand and smiling. Sakura rolled her eyes and walked over to the window. She unlatched it and Ino landed at her feet. She stood up and dusted off her clothes, then placed her hands on her hips and stared at Sakura. She nodded once at her and then spoke.

"I did it," she said, staring intently into Sakura's eyes. Sakura raised her eyebrows and looked at her friend.

"Did what? I have no clue what you're talking about." Sakura looked down at her hand and frowned. The nail polish was already drying. She looked up at Ino and glared. "Thanks to you, I have to clean off my hand." She shoved her hand in Ino's face and pursed her lips. "All over the place, and it was my favorite color too. You owe me."

Ino sighed and pushed Sakura's hand out of the way. "Yeah, whatever. What I mean," she said, pointing at Sakura, "Is that I finally kissed Asuma."

Sakura dropped her hand and whipped her head up at Ino. Her eyes were huge and her mouth fell open. She stuttered. "You...what...One more time."

Ino stared at Sakura and shrugged her shoulders. "I kissed Asuma."

Before Ino could finish her sentence, Sakura had begun to laugh. "Oh, Ino. You're so funny. I was kidding when I said you should. Oh, you're such a joker." She looked up at Ino, who stood staring at her with a hint of anger. Sakura stopped laughing and looked at Ino again. "You are kidding, right Ino?" Ino shook her head and Sakura fell back onto her bed. She bounced on the blankets, then fell still. Ino's shadow hovered over her and she stared into Ino's eyes.

"I really did it, Sakura. And I left him a note too." Ino stood above her friend and watched her facial expression change a few times. Finally, Sakura spoke again.

"I can't believe it, Ino. Wow. How'd you do it?" Sakura grinned. "How'd it feel? Was it like magic? Did he respond?" Sakura tugged on her friend's arm and pulled her next to her on the bed. Ino fell into the blankets and stretched out her arms.

"Well," she began. "The idea struck me the other day, after you and I discussed it, you know?" Sakura put up her hand and shook her head. Ino cocked her head, confused at Sakura's reaction.

"Oh no, Ino Yamanaka, I do _not _think so. _You_, and you alone, came up with this crazy idea. I do not want people knocking on my door blaming me for whatever trouble you get into."

Ino opened her mouth to say something, but the two girls jumped as a knock sounded on the door below. They tried to ignore it at first, hoping that whoever it was would go away, but they knocked again a few seconds later and Sakura frowned, looking over at her friend.

"Hello?" A voice called out. Both girls recognized it as Asuma's and Ino cringed, not expecting him to find her so soon.

Ino pursed her lips together and stared at Sakura with big, innocent eyes. "Oh, please, Sakura, please get rid of him? I'm not ready for him to find me yet." Sakura cocked her head to the side, slightly confused, and then sighed, annoyed with the behavior of her friend, and motioned for her to stay quiet and out of sight. Meanwhile, Sakura was moving toward the window to look outside.

Asuma stood at her door, his posture relaxed and untroubled as usual. A cigarette hung limply from one corner of his mouth and he reached out to knock on the door again.

"Hello? Sakura? Are you there?" Sakura ducked her head down when he looked away from the door and she crawled carefully back over to Ino. She grabbed Ino's arm and tugged her harshly to the floor. She pointed her finger at her friend and glared.

"You owe me one, Ino Yamanaka, now get out of here before he realizes you're here. I'm letting him in." Ino's eyes widened and she nodded, moving toward Sakura's bedroom door. She paused in the door frame and smiled happily at her pink haired friend.

"Sakura, you're the best, you know that, right?" Sakura rolled her eyes and nodded.

"Don't you dare forget that. Now get lost!" Ino smiled again and ran toward the opposite end of the house to find a way to escape, and Sakura stood up and walked over toward her window to peek her head out. Asuma was still standing in front of the doorway waiting, and she felt slightly guilty for making him wait outside. She'd have to remember to murder Ino later. For now, though, she waved her hand and smiled.

"Hello, Asuma! Is there something I can help you with?" Asuma turned to her and smiled. It was a warm, friendly smile, and Sakura couldn't sense anything out of the ordinary with him. If he was flustered or worried at all, he was very good at hiding it. And that's why he's one of the best ninjas in Konoha, she thought, looking over him with an appreciative eye. He was a wonderful man, and Sakura trusted Ino in her decision, albeit and odd one, to chase after this man. Sakura inhaled deeply. Actually, it was more like he was chasing her right now.

"Are you busy now, Sakura?" Sakura shook her head and he continued. "Would you mind if I came in then?" Again Sakura shook her head.

"Not at all. Let me come down and get the door for you. Would you like something to drink when you get inside?" Asuma smiled at her and watched her disappear from the window.

After he had read Ino's strange message, he sat back down at his desk and tried to work. He did try, really, but all he could think about was Ino's odd behavior, so he had grabbed her piece of paper and stared at it. It held tons of random doodles, but the only words on it were the instructions for him to find her. He studied the paper for a long time while he decided what to do about it, and he came up with the conclusion that he needed to have an answer. He just couldn't leave the question unsolved, and so he searched the paper for clues.

At first he had interpreted the pictures as nothing more than nervous doodles, but as time passed by he realized that they were things that he could associate with Ino: there was a sakura tree, some flowers, a deer and a butterfly, a leaf, a crudely drawn picture of herself, and other random things that he could find around the village, all relating to Ino in some way or another. He sighed, trying to decide where he wanted to start, and he figured that trying her house would be the best idea, but when he arrived there was no answer and so he left, deciding that Sakura's house would be the next best thing. If anyone knew where Ino was, it would be her best friend, Sakura.

And so here he stood, waiting for Sakura to open her front door, on a wild goose chase trying to find where one of his ex-students had decided to hide herself from him. He sighed, realizing how ridiculous it all seemed. If it had been a message from anyone else, he would have ignored it, but because it was from Ino, he felt as if he had to find her, no matter where she may be at.

Sakura stirred him from his brief thoughts when she opened the door smiling, and invited him in. She held her arm out to motion where he should go and he followed her arm, bowing his head slightly as he entered the house. It was surprisingly clean, he noted, gazing around the immaculate rooms as he passed them. It really shouldn't have surprised him, considering the fact that Sakura was a medic nin and needed to have clean environments to work in, but he had always thought that her personal life was rather messy. He would not make the same mistake in thinking that way about her again. He pulled out a small chair and sat at a clean, quaint little kitchen table and watched as Sakura moved around the room, gathering items for refreshments. She turned her head over her shoulder and stared at him.

"What kind of drink would you like? I don't have a whole lot here, but I've got enough to be hospitable. I haven't been able to go shopping in a while; there's been a lot to do at the hospital lately. Today was the first day I've had a day off in a while, and I was forced to take it by Tsunade. She was afraid I was going to overwork myself." She chuckled, pleased with the attention her superior gave her. Tsunade was like a second mother to Sakura, and she always strived to please and find praise from her. She studied hard and paid attention, making sure that she would not mess up and cause problems later. It paid off for her, and Sakura was successful and well-liked by not only Tsunade, but the rest of the hospital and much of Konoha as well. She was a very eligible bachelorette, and Asuma wondered when she would finally find someone to settle down with. He did not want her to end up like him; an older, lonely man with no one to come home to. She deserved much better, especially because of all she had been through in the past few years.

Asuma shook his head at Sakura. "No need to worry about me, I'm fine. Maybe just a glass of water would be nice." Sakura shrugged her shoulders.

"If you say so." She stopped buzzing around the kitchen and set the items in her arms on the counter and walked to a cupboard and grabbed a glass. She turned on the faucet and waited until it got colder, then filled it up and walked it to the table. She set it down in front of him and then sat in a chair across the table from him. She folded her hands politely and smiled at him. "What can I do for you?"

Now, Asuma sighed, a slight frown marking his face. It had bothered Asuma more than he had initially let on, and Sakura could tell now. He relaxed his shoulders a little bit and looked around the room a little before he finally settled his eyes on her face and began to talk.

"What do you know about Ino's stunt this morning?" Sakura bit her cheek and stared down at her thumbs. She didn't know how much Ino had wanted her to tell him, but she didn't know much about it anyway. She sighed, realizing that telling the truth would be best.

"I know what she did, but that's about it. Sorry, Asuma," she said gazing at him pityingly. She wished she could help him more, but she had no more information for him; he already knew everything that she did. Except, maybe, how Ino actually felt about him and why she did what she did. "She came to me right after she did it, but left before you got here. She didn't mention where she was going before she left though, and I didn't think to ask her either." Sakura mentally chided herself for that, wishing now that she knew the location of her friend so that she could find her and kill her easily. Now she actually had to go out and look. Sakura looked up at Asuma, who was looking around the room thoughtfully, trying to figure out what he was going to do next.

"Did she leave you anything to help you find her?" Asuma shook his head and pulled out the piece of paper she had left him.

"Nothing but this. I already figured out that these are places she might be at. Sakura studied the drawings, nodding her head in agreement. She noticed the sakura tree and frowned.

"This tree is hideous! It looks like all its leaves are falling off!" She glared, hoping that a hole would burn into the paper and destroy the ugly tree, but it didn't and she set the paper down harshly. "Again, sorry, but I don't think I can be of much help. Did you try looking at her house?"

Asuma nodded. "That was the first place I looked. Nobody was home so I came here, but apparently this was useless too." He stood up and began to walk toward the door. "If you see her, can you tell her to come find me please?" Sakura nodded and followed him to the door.

"You're not going to give up looking for her, are you?" Sakura felt relief sweep through her when he shook his head.

"Of course not. There's no way she'll come find me on her own. If there's one thing Ino is, it's determined. She won't give this up until she can't help it anymore, even if it's hurting her to continue doing it." Sakura nodded, knowing that what Asuma said was true. She followed him out the door and shut it softly behind her. He stood on the step and stared down at her. She smiled weakly and waved to him.

"I hope it goes well for you, Asuma." Asuma shrugged his shoulders and turned away from her. He waved his hand as he reached the edge of her yard and she waved back, regardless of whether or not he could see her.

"Who knows?" He said, and then Sakura watched him until he turned down a street and she could no longer see him. There was no way Ino was going to make this easy on him, and she felt pity for Asuma. He was going to have a very hard time finding Ino, and she hoped that he would not decide to give up on her before he found her.


End file.
